Osun 2026: Adeleke, Oyetola trade accusations over poll

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, and the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, have traded accusations over the credibility of the August 15 governorship election in the state.

 

The disagreement followed comments by Oyetola, a former governor of Osun State and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, who urged Adeleke to prepare for defeat in the forthcoming poll.

 

Oyetola spoke on Saturday while addressing APC stakeholders and supporters in the state as the party intensified its campaign ahead of the election.

 

He said Adeleke’s endorsement of President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election would not stop the APC from reclaiming the Osun governorship seat.

 

Speaking in Yoruba, Oyetola said, “They realised that they are already losing out. Then they claimed to have endorsed us. He almost cried. Endorsement cannot retain this seat for you. We are taking it over.

 

“If you like, make 10 endorsements, we will collect this one from you.”

 

Reacting, Adeleke interpreted the statement as a threat to the credibility of the election and accused the APC of preparing to manipulate the electoral process.

 

The governor’s position was contained in a statement issued on Sunday by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed.

 

Adeleke urged democracy advocates and relevant authorities to take note of Oyetola’s remarks, insisting that the people of Osun would resist any attempt to interfere with their constitutional right to freely elect their preferred candidate.

 

He also defended his endorsement of President Tinubu, arguing that it demonstrated his political strength and ability to mobilise support for the President ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

 

Adeleke further accused Oyetola of damaging the image of the President and weakening the APC’s standing among voters in Osun.

 

He said, “A serving minister of the Republic had made an open threat against a free and fair election.

 

“The minister has personally confirmed all previous reports that Osun APC has lost the electoral confidence of the people and is therefore focused only on rigging next Saturday.”

 

The governor, however, expressed confidence in his re-election, saying, “As for us, we are winning this election by the grace of God and mass support of the people. We are not going to snatch the democratic rights of the people as Mr Oyetola had threatened. We will be re-elected by the choice of the voters.”